Change in the business world is happening quicker than ever before. Does that mean business owners should stop planning? I say uncertainty increases the value of planning. Consider this true story: During the chaotic fall of everything, from August to October of the Great Recession, sales at my company plummeted. Suddenly sales were 30 percent below the same month of the previous year, horribly below the planned level. So did the fact...

For everything in life, you need a plan, right? The same can be said for business. Every business, whether a startup or a full-fledged, profitable organization, needs a business plan. To know where you are going, you have to know where you came from and what came before you. Here are the key elements of a winning business plan. 1. Executive summary. An executive summary is a one- or two-page summary of your entire business...

For some reason, leaders struggle to embrace their “inner weirdness.” But if you don’t figure out how to do it, you’ll miss out on one of the simplest ways to strengthen yourteam and build an amazing company culture. When we talk about building weirdness in our team, the ultimate goal is to develop a company with perfect authenticity. Tony Hsieh is a firm believer in this, and it’s allowed him to build...

There’s ample scientific evidence supporting the idea that constant learning is good for the brain. Marian Diamond, a renowned neuroscientist, says that the brain can actually become sharper and stronger with a little focused effort. With this in mind, implementing a purposeful employee learning initiative at your office can help create sharper, stronger, higher performing brains. For many professionals, continuing...

Whether you lead a team of two or 2,000, it’s likely you’ve noticed the value of hiring and retaining capable, self-motivated people. Yet it’s all too common–and completely avoidable–that you inadvertently do little things that may de-motivate your “go to” people in big ways. Here are ten life-tested watch list items to make sure that as a leader, you’re not making your...